Despite the government setting aside hundreds of millions of dollars to help support beleaguered food banks, only a small fraction of this money has actually reached its intended recipients, said the Washington Post.

The CARES Act, among other things, allocated $850 million in aid to food banks across the country, but as of early June, less than half, about $300 million, has been sent out. At the same time, with so many out of work, a recent survey of 1,100 adults found that 26 percent have reported either going without meals or having to rely on charities or government programs to obtain groceries since February. In the face of growing food insecurity, food banks have been struggling to keep up with exploding demand. Another survey of 3,219 people found a 33 percent increase in household food insecurity since the pandemic began, with 35.6 percent of food insecure households classified as newly food insecure.

Adding further struggle for millions of Americans, shoppers are seeing higher prices at the grocery store, as the food supply chain experiences major disruption on account of the global pandemic. Overall averages for grocery prices increased by 2.6 percent in April, which the Bureau of Labor Statistics said is the biggest month-to-month spike since 1974. Within this average, however, are increases far beyond even that. For example, in just one month, the price of eggs has increased by 16 percent, citrus fruits are 4.3 percent more expensive, and the cost of all varieties of meats are up, including pork (by 3 percent), chicken (by 5.8 percent) and fish (by 4.2 percent).

Lawmakers, concerned about the pace of at which funds were being distributed, have attributed the delays largely to bureaucratic stresses, as the number of issues the government has to deal with has expanded dramatically since the pandemic. While they do not believe the administration is deliberately dragging its feet on the matter, they have criticized the system for being inadequate for meeting people's needs.

The food aid is not the only program that's been working slower than anticipated. The Post noted that $9 billion had also been allocated for Community Development Block Grant and Emergency Solutions Grant programs, but so far only $250 million has been released. Further, $100 million that was to help nursing homes certify compliance standards for processes such as infection control remains entirely unspent, as is $100 million to help rural Americans get broadband access, as well as $100 million for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to purchase protective equipment for firefighters.